1. Field
The present inventive concept relates to compositions and kits for breast cancer diagnosis, and breast cancer diagnosis methods using the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
Microvesicles are small membranous vesicles that exist in or are secreted from various types of cells. Microvesicles secreted from cells include: (i) exosomes, which are vesicles having a diameter of 30 to 100 nm that originate from cells; (ii) ectosomes (also called shedding microvesicles (SMVs)), which are vesicles that are released directly from plasma membranes and have a diameter of 50 to 1000 nm; and (iii) apoptotic blebs, which are vesicles secreted from dying cells that have a diameter of 50 to 5000 nm.
It has been confirmed by using an electron microscope that exosomes are not directly released from a plasma membrane, but rather originate from specific intracellular regions called multivesicular bodies (MVBs), and are then released into the extracellular environment as exosomes. Although it has not yet been clearly determined which molecular mechanisms are involved in the generation of exosomes, it is known that red blood cells, other various kinds of immune cells, including B-lymphocytes, T-lymphocytes, dendritic cells, blood platelets, and macrophages, and even tumor cells are able to produce and secret exosomes when in a normal live state. Exosomes are also known to be separated and excreted as different cell types depending on whether they are in a normal state, a pathological state, or an abnormal state.
Microvesicles may contain microRNAs (miRNAs), which may be used for detection of the status of individual cells or organisms. The status may be a disease, for example, cancer, hereditary diseases, heart diseases, or neuronal diseases, such as schizophrenia.
Existing breast cancer diagnosis methods are invasive and thus, are painful to patients, and are very costly, which may cause a person to have less frequent checkups. Blood protein markers with high accuracy in blood tests for breast cancer diagnosis are not currently available, and circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are known to be applicable only in diagnosis of metastatic breast cancers, but not in early diagnosis of cancer.
Therefore, for early diagnosis of breast cancer using a less invasive manner, there is a need for selective screening of breast cancer-specific blood markers.